


Together, We'll Make It Right

by welcometotherealworld



Category: Rooster Teeth/Achievement Hunter RPF
Genre: Depression, Mental Health Issues
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-07-14
Updated: 2015-07-17
Packaged: 2018-04-09 06:46:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,818
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4338029
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/welcometotherealworld/pseuds/welcometotherealworld
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ray wasn't thrilled at the idea of being sent to a rehabilitation center but five strangers could be all it takes to make him realize he was worth being saved.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Please Don't Leave Me

Ray stared at the small building with a mix of annoyance and dreariness. He turned to his mother, his eyes silently pleading her to bring him back home, but she turned her gaze away, unable to look at her child more than two seconds without tearing up. Too exhausted to insist, Ray pulled his backpack on his shoulder, his eyes down to his feet.

“They will take good care of you, you’ll see,” his mother assured him.

“Yeah…”

“I’ll come get you back as soon as possible. But for now…it’s just too much for me.

Ray stayed quiet. He understood.

They walked to the entrance, Ray’s heart beating hard in his chest. Everything was going too fast, he didn’t want to end up all alone. Following his mother inside, Ray slowed down as he was greeted by a man in pastel clothes. An employee. His large beard contrasted with his thin red hair, barely covering his head. A warm smile made his eyes glow as he looked at Ray and his mom.

“Hi, I’m Jack,” he said as he extended his hand to Ray. “I’m a guardian here at the Center and I’ll be the one taking care of you, Ray. How do you feel today?”

Ray remained quiet. The fact he was actually here answered the question by itself.

Jack did not seem bothered by his silence. He turned to Ray’s mother, unfazed.

“We’ll take good care of him,” Jack assured her, his voice ever so sweet. “You can come visit him any day during the visiting hours and if anything happens, you’ll be the first to know. We’ll look after him, you don’t need to worry about anything.”

“Thank you, thank you so much…”

They all stayed quiet for a moment, Jack’s eyes going from Ray’s mom to the young boy and back to Ray’s mom.

“Do you need a moment to…?”

Ray’s mother shook her head, sadness filling her eyes as she turned to her son. Ray kept his eyes down, his throat painfully tight as his hands fiddled with the sleeves of his purple hoodie. His mother softly put her hand on his arm.

“I love you. I love you so, so much. You’ll see, they’ll help you here. I’ll be back before you even know it,” she promised. “And when all of this will be behind us, we’ll go on a trip. You’d like that? It’ll do us good, you’ll see…”

“Mom, please don’t leave me,” Ray suddenly begged her, letting out a single, quiet sob.

“Oh honey…” She hugged her son tightly, gently stroking his back. “I don’t know what to do,” she murmured in his ear. “They do. You’ll feel better here Ray. You won’t be alone for long, You won’t be alone at all in fact… You could make great friends here…” She stepped back to look at him, her hands on his shoulders. “Everything will be alright,” she promised.

Ray didn’t believe her but he wouldn’t let his mother worry about him anymore. He forced a smile and wiped his tears away. If anything, he was the one to blame for being here, and no one else.

His mother let go of him and wiped her eyes as well.

“I’ll see you soon,” she managed to say.

She nodded at Jack and quickly left, eager to be back home, to be away from the concerned looks. Away from Ray.

Heart heavy as ever, body slightly shaking from exhaustion, Ray turned to Jack, absolutely miserable. The man offered him a compassionate smile.

“I’ll show you around a bit, and I’ll bring you to your room so you can rest. How does that sound?”

Ray shrugged. He felt empty again. Nothing was going to affect him, nothing would amaze him. He’d go through the tour and count the seconds until he could crash in his bed and sleep until the end of times.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter is ready to upload, I'm just waiting to see if anyone wants me to go on or not.  
> If you're expecting things to get happier, I'm sorry but it's gonna take awhile haha  
> Chapters will most likely be as short as this one.


	2. You Know Where to Find Me

Jack’s guided tour didn’t take much time but it was enough to make Ray realize Jack was the sweetest person on Earth. He could find something positive to say about anything and he treated everyone with an enormous amount of respect. Ray’s mother was right; he was in good hands here. But as good as they were, Ray knew nothing could really make feel him better. It was already too late for him.

He had left his bag at the end of his bed, not bothering to empty it and settle in. He was carefully eating a cupcake Jack had given him while they were passing through the cafeteria. It was the biggest place of the Center, and the emptiest when it was past mealtimes. Jack had assured him that most _residents_ (Jack never referred to them as patients) liked eating together at the cafeteria but it was okay if Ray preferred eating alone at first, they were a few who couldn’t stand being surrounded anyway and stayed in their rooms to eat. They always had the chance to talk with the others in the main lounge, where they could find something to entertain themselves, a movie, a book, whatever. Ray wasn’t planning on going there. His room’s walls were the only walls he would look at. Unless he had to go to the bathroom.

Or if someone knocked on his door.

Startled, Ray sat up straight on his bed, crumbles of cupcake falling off his chest. He had just gotten to the Center, who could possibly want to talk to him? Slowly getting up, Ray walked to the door and opened it slightly. There was a boy his age in the corridor, a trembling smile on his lips. His brown hair was all over the place and his greenish eyes were restless. He was wearing the standard white t-shirt and blue pants the Center handed out to everyone. Ray hadn’t bothered putting his new clothes on yet, but he knew he was going to have to wear them soon if he was planning to go eating.

The boy extended his hand to Ray.

“Hi, I’m Gavin. I’m your neighbor,” he said in an English accent, pointing the door behind him.

Ray stayed quiet for awhile, dubious. He eventually shook Gavin’s hand but did not invite the boy inside. Visibly disturbed by the lack of reaction he was getting from Ray, Gavin swayed on his feet, waiting for something to happen.

“So, um… What’s your name?”

“Ray.”

“Pleasure to meet you Ray. How long are you staying?”

“Don’t know. Hopefully not long.”

“It’s not that bad here,” Gavin swore. “Everyone’s really nice. I’ve been here for a week, myself.”

“Okay.”

Gavin’s persistent glare and social conventions forced Ray to step out of the way and let the boy in. He didn’t want company but obviously, Gavin wasn’t going to let him rest anytime soon. Ray went back on his bed as Gavin followed him inside. The room wasn’t big and, aside from the bed, the only other seat was a wooden chair. Gavin pulled it away from the desk and swiped his hand over the cushion to clean it. He swiped it six more times before finally sitting down.

“Is everything okay?” Ray asked, puzzled.

“Oh! Yeah, yeah! It’s just…this thing I do,” Gavin explained vaguely.

“Okay…”

“How old are you?”

“I’m seventeen.”

“Me too!” Gavin cheered. “What are the odds! Where do you come from?”

“I’m from the city.”

“Ah, I’m from the countryside. It’s really quiet there, it’s rather nice.”

“I bet.”

Ray ate the rest of his cupcake and crossed his arms, his eyes glued to the little painting hanging next to his door without really seeing it. Gavin wriggled in his seat, his fingers tapping rapidly on his knees.

“Do you have any hobbies? Something you really like to do?”

Ray looked over at Gavin, raising an eyebrow. If the boy had known what had brought Ray at the Center, he would have never dared to ask the question. Ray stayed quiet again, resuming his contemplation of the blue painting.

“I, uh, I like cameras,” Gavin said, uneasy.

“Yeah?”

“Yeah! I film stuff with my friend.”

“Porn?”

“W-What?” Gavin stuttered before letting out a laugh, startled by Ray’s deadpan humour. “No! No, no, no… We film stuff in slow-motion, like…bubbles flying around or…fire. Well, we used to…”

Ray simply nodded, unmoved by what Gavin was saying.

“So, uh… You…you met Jack?” the boy went on.

“Yeah.”

“He’s nice, isn’t he?”

“Yeah.”

The conversation fell flat again. Gavin let out a nervous laugh.

“You’re not very talkative, are you?”

“Not at the moment, no.”

“I see… Well, I better leave you alone then,” Gavin said, finally picking on Ray’s wish to be alone. He put the chair exactly back where it was. “If you ever need someone to talk to, you know where to find me.”

He smiled gently and went back where he came from, his head down, looking intensely at where his feet were going. Once the door was closed again, Ray let out sigh, exhausted, and settled in his bed, trying to get comfortable. There were still a few hours before supper, Ray could use the time to relax and turn off his thoughts for a while.


	3. First Days Are Tough

When Ray woke up, his stomach rumbling and his eyes blinded by the sun, he realized he might be late for supper. Still dressed, Ray sat straight in his bed, his head feeling heavy and a horrible taste filling his mouth. There wasn’t a better way to start his stay at the Center.

Pushing back a tired groan, Ray walked to his dresser and picked up a clean set of clothes. They smelled soap and were smoother than Ray had imagined, but in no way did they make him feel good. One glance in the mirror confirmed he looked like a complete idiot. His blue pants seemed too big for him and Ray felt uncomfortable without his hoodie. He’d have to ask Jack if he was allowed to wear it.

His stomach still reminding him it was empty, Ray left his room and quietly made his way to the cafeteria. Breakfast wouldn’t be ready at this hour, but he’d definitely be the first in line and he could get back to his room before anyone else got out of bed.

This could have been a great plan if Ray had been the only one to think about it. Three other patients were waiting at the entrance of the cafeteria with a guardian, waiting for the doors to open. Slowing down his pace, Ray stopped far enough from them so they wouldn’t talk to him. He didn’t know how much longer he had to wait, but his stomach wasn’t getting any quieter…

Feeling like he was been watched, Ray looked around the room and noticed another patient sitting in an armchair. The man smiled politely before averting his eyes, his cheeks going red. Ray didn’t think much of it, figuring this guy wouldn't try to reach out to him, but a deep voice broke the silence a few seconds later.

“You’re new here, right?”

Ray raised his gaze.

“Yeah.”

“Trouble sleeping?”

“Not really. Why?”

“Well usually, at this time, it’s the insomniac club meet-up,” the man told him.

“Oh. I just went to bed really early yesterday. And now I’m too hungry to sleep.”

“They’ll open up in a few,” the man assured him.

Ray nodded slowly, thanking him for the info. The guy averted his eyes again, leaving Ray be.

He rested his body against the wall, looking at the cafeteria’s doors, waiting patiently for them to open. By the time they did, a dozen of patients were now gathered at the entrance. Ray slowly walked inside, following the man he had spoken with earlier. Now that he was up, Ray realized he was a bit taller than him and bulkier. The guy could actually pull off blue pants and the lame white t-shirt handed out by the Center. Ray was wondering what could have brought a guy like him to the Center when the man turned around to offer him a tray.

“Thanks,” Ray mumbled. He reached towards a cup of orange juice but the man stopped him.

“There’s hot chocolate at the end of the line if that’s what you prefer,” he told him before ignoring his own advice and taking a glass of orange juice. “Just thought you should know.”

“Okay…”

“And if you take baked beans, I suggest adding some maple syrup if you want to be able to eat any.”

“I’ll stick to eggs and bacon, thanks.”

The guy nodded and went back to his things. He took himself two pancakes and a small bowl of fruit as Ray grabbed as much bacon as he could. When he reached the end of the line, Ray froze. Now was the time to go back to his room, eat alone and rest the whole day without interacting with anyone. But the man was sitting by himself at a table, far from the others. He could eat with him, maybe talk for a bit or just enjoy his company as they both ate in silence. That guy wasn’t like Gavin, he looked okay with having no conversation. But Ray thought he probably shouldn’t bother him. The best was to go eat in his room. At his desk, on the uncomfortable wooden chair. Alone.

The man rose up his head and met Ray’s gaze. He raised an eyebrow, wondering why Ray was standing still in the middle of the cafeteria, and slowly pointed to the seat in front of him, a silent invitation to join him. It was all Ray needed to gather up the courage to walk up to him and sit down at his table.

“First days are tough,” the man simply said as he made sure they had enough place to put both their trays down.

“Have you been here long?” Ray asked, curious.

“Three weeks.”

That was probably why he seemed so calm. He was probably leaving soon. All fixed-up.

“You don’t sit with your insomniac club?” Ray went on.

“No. They’re not…really comfortable around me.”

“How come? You seem like a pretty normal dude. No offense.”

The man replied with a small smile, but his eyes were sad.

“If they don’t wanna eat with you, why don’t you go eat in your room?” Ray asked.

“I already spend too much time there. And sometimes, one of the guardians, Jack, sits with me for a while. I’m not gonna lie, I ate in my room most of the times though. I like being alone, but…I hate it at the same time, you know? I don’t know what’s best for me sometimes: being alone or surrounded.

“I don’t know about you, but the voice in my head ain't exactly fun.”

“Yeah, I hear you,” the guy said with another sad smile. “I’m Ryan by the way.”

“Ray.”

“You seem pretty young…”

“I’m seventeen.”

“Oh. I’m sorry you ended up here,” Ryan said, genuine.

Ray held his glare a moment before looking down at his food.

“How old are _you_?”

“Twenty-three.”

“Your family brought you here?”

“No, I did.”

“Uh, really? And on a scale of one to ten, how much do you regret it?”

“I don’t,” Ryan assured him. “It’s…it’s tough, but I know it’s for the best. And it isn’t just for me… What about you? Your parents brought you here?”

“My mother. I was too big of a problem for her to handle.”

Ryan nodded, understanding. The conversation died, both men lost in their thoughts, and they ate the rest of their meal in silence. Ray finished first and waited a few moments before getting up, taking his tray with me.

“Well…I should go. I’ve got stuff to do. Those walls aren’t going to stare at themselves.”

“If you like reading, you can always pick a book from the lounge and bring it to your room. Keep your mind occupied. That’s what I usually do.”

“Are there any comics?”

“Yeah, I think so. At this hour, you won’t be bothered by anyone,” Ryan assured him.

“Cool. Thanks.”

“No problem. See you later Ray.”

“Bye…”

Ray walked away and left his empty tray near a trashcan before quickly exiting the cafeteria, where bigger groups of patients kept arriving.

His plan to avoid everyone and stay in his room had failed, but it had allowed Ray to meet someone he could possibly trust. He didn’t know if he would let himself talk to Ryan again, and he would probably not since it seemed Ryan would keep his distance. He understood his desire to be alone, unlike Gavin who couldn't stand the silence.

Ray felt Ryan was out of place at the Center. He was calm, polite, perfectly in control. What made him think he had to spend weeks in this hell hole?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, I haven't even started writing the next chapter, so it probably will take awhile before I post again. I'll try to take less than a week.


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